Aspects of the present invention generally relate to the field data storage in a process control system environment. Industry increasingly depends on computer systems to control industrial processes and to monitor those processes. There is great value in storing the data generated by an industrial process and using that data to understand and possibly improve the efficiency of the process. Analysis of the stored data can lead to faster response time when a process breaks down and greater ability to predict when downtime may be necessary. Bottlenecks in the process of a facility may be recognized and addressed to increase overall productivity.
Typical industrial processes are extremely complex and generate enormous amounts of data every day. To store all of the data and make it accessible to those who need it is no small task. Events that occur in the process must be tracked and stored at a high rate of accuracy and they should be accessible to other systems throughout the process facility or facilities. Due to this complexity, it is a difficult but important task to provide an event historian system that can quickly and accurately record event data as it occurs and provide results to queries of the stored data in a responsive manner.